Spurring the electric vehicle market has become a growing priority for state and local leaders looking to cut transportation emissions, and utilities have an increased interest in growing EV markets as they look to diversify their loads.

The Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emphasized affordability in their rollout of the Safer, Affordable, Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) rules, which they say will save over $500 billion by 2029 in “societal costs” as well as create certainty for automobile manufacturers.